Q&A: Sen. Andrea Stewart-Cousins on Power-Sharing in Albany

A top New York state Democrat, Sen. Andrea Stewart-Cousins has for two years been in the unusual position of leading a minority conference of Democrats–even though the New York state Senate has a Democratic majority.

President Barack Obama greets State Senator Andrea Stewart Cousins in Tarrytown on May 14.

Associated Press

Ms. Stewart Cousins, the first woman to hold a New York state legislative leadership position, is in charge of the Senate Democrats, sometimes referred to in Albany as “the mainline” Democrats. But the state Senate is run by a power-sharing coalition of breakaway Democrats — called the Independent Democratic Conference — and Republican senators, whose leaders jointly negotiate the budget and decide which bills see a vote.

Potential for another sea-change in the sometimes chaotic state Senate was raised last month at a convention for the Working Families Party, where Gov. Andrew Cuomo vowed by video message to help Democrats regain total power in the chamber.

Ms. Stewart-Cousins, who represents Yonkers, said in an interview this week that she and Sen. Jeff Klein, who leads the Independent Democrats, have discussed a power-sharing coalition. She said the conversation was “amenable” but “not conclusive.” But one way or another, she said, “I believe we’ll be the majority” next session.

(In response, Mr. Klein said in e-email: “There are no discussions taking place.”)

A spokeswoman for Sen. Dean Skelos, the Republican Senate leader, said, Senator Skelos very much enjoys working with Senator Stewart-Cousins, but “fundamentally disagrees with the direction she … want[s] to take this state.”

Even if Senate Democrats are able to gain power, Ms. Stewart-Cousins has to be reelected to a leadership position next year by her members in order to remain leader. If Ms. Stewart-Cousins did get elected to a leadership position in a majority conference, she would become the first female Senate president in state history.

She sat down with The Wall Street Journal to discuss her legislative disappointments, and if she can mend fences with Mr. Klein. Below is a slightly condensed transcript of the interview.

WSJ: The legislative session ends this week. How did it go for you?

It’s been an exercise, on some level, in frustration, trying to keep our issues alive and on the front burner. We were able to do some good things … anyway, it’s not like school is out for us.

WSJ: You introduced a public campaign finance bill, one of the most talked-about issues of the session, but it was never brought to the floor. Why do you think that is?

I fully expected to have something done other than what happened in the budget [a program for financing solely the state comptroller's race with public funds], which I think is woefully inadequate. It certainly wasn’t for lack of trying on the part of my conference.

WSJ: Did you talk to Sen. Klein about it?

There was always the assurance that it was a priority of the IDC, and a priority of the governor’s. The talks were public — this was important. There was every expectation that even if you didn’t like my bill, you would introduce something that could get us to the point where we could say we had meaningful campaign finance reform. That never happened.

WSJ: Coalition leaders have said it’s a bipartisan give-and-take, and they work together, trading legislation. Do you believe Democrats have lost in that give-and-take?

The expectations have been thwarted … what’s happened, frankly, is the values we have as Democrats have being given to Republicans to manage, and that’s why we’re not getting results.

WSJ: Sen. Klein and Sen. Skelos were in negotiations for a campaign finance bill throughout the session, but the talks soured. Do you think they could have produced a bill this session?

I don’t know what to think. What was apparently the byproduct of negotiations appeared in the budget, and it was relevant to one race.

WSJ: Sen. Klein said the Working Families Party is the reason campaign finance failed. What do you think of that?

The Republicans are not interested in campaign finance … The IDC-Republican coalition talked about progressive things happening, but progressive things didn’t happen. And campaign finance fell victim to that leadership.

WSJ: Are you interested in forming a power-sharing coalition with the IDC?

The electorate voted for a majority of Senate Democrats, and we should be the majority, so I am supportive of an arrangement that allows Democrats to be the majority. I’m open to having the Senate majority.

WSJ: Can you and Sen. Klein get along?

We get along. You’d be hard-pressed to find somebody who doesn’t get along with me. I’m not a hyper-partisan person, I’m not an unreasonable person … what’s not to get along?

I think it’s important when people elect people to represent them on a specific party line that those people then go up and do that, and anything less than that is disenfranchising the voter. Because there was no expectation that you were going to go off and empower Republicans. For example. So I’m sure I could get along with Sen. Klein.